Small Space Herbal Remedy: Make a DIY Hanging Herb Garden

Fresh herbs make everything more awesome, but it's a bummer to buy them in bunches, use the few leaves a recipe calls for, and then watch the rest turn brown within a week. The best solution: Grow your own! Even if you have the tiniest of kitchens, it's doable by taking the herb pots off the counter and onto the wall. Can't drill holes in your rental walls? No worries. This project uses Command™ Display Ledges and Medium Designer Hooks to make an easy herb garden.

(Image credit: Rikki Snyder)

If you need a little motivation to get going, check out Kitchn's tips on growing herbs in containers and basic, no-fail herbs for beginners. You could also use this project to display low-maintenance decorative plants like succulents. Choose an area that gets good light: under a skylight (if you're lucky), or facing an eastern or southern window works well. If you don't have a wall that gets good light, you can install a grow light over your herbs.

There are two kinds of gardens here for two categories of herbs: babies (like small starter pots of basil or sage) and big guys (larger bunches that grow in tendrils and can drape over the edge of a pot, like rosemary or thyme).

(Image credit: Rikki Snyder)

Baby Herbs

Start your herbs in small pots. Herbs prefer fast-draining containers, like pots with drain holes and saucers, or terra-cotta pots lined with rocks at the bottom for drainage.

Use a high-quality potting soil, a good organic fertilizer, and water so that the soil stays moist without being water-logged. In warm weather or dry climates, that might mean watering once a day.

Be mindful of weight restrictions. The Command™ Display Ledges are four inches wide and hold up to two pounds, plus they don't have a rail on the shelf, so they're great for taking your herb pots on and off regularly.

(Image credit: Rikki Snyder)

Big Herbs

For the bigger herbs, we used pots with flat backs that lay flush on the wall. For drainage in a pot without holes, line the bottom with rocks or activated charcoal, which helps absorb excess water.

Again, use a high-quality potting soil, a good organic fertilizer, and water to keep soil moist but not water-logged.